Hunter Mahan shot a 5-under 30 on the front side to tie Sean O'Hair for first place at 11-under par. Mahan had four birdies on par-4 holes and one on a par-3 hole. He had 21 shots in the final seven holes on the front side.

At 3:12 p.m., there was a seven-way tie for first place at 7-under par. Ernie Els was the only player to have finished his round, shooting a 6-under 64 that left him at 7-under 203. Also at -7 were Matt Kuchar, Justin Leonard, Bubba Watson, Phil Mickelson, Sean O'Hair and Ryan Palmer.

Retief Goosen posted a triple bogey on No. 1 Saturday at approximately 2:15 p.m. at the Bridgestone Ivitational. He dropped from the leader at 7-under-par to tied for 13th at 4-under after the seven on the South Course at Firestone Country Club.

Goosen had two bad chip shots out of the primary rough and missed a 16-foot putt. He then tapped the ball into the hole from 2-feet away.

South African Retief Goosen was the tournament leader when the morning wave was completed on Friday. Goosen had a round of 4-under 66 to finish with a 36-hole score of 7-under 133. American Justin Leonard also shot a 66 Friday to sit in second place after the morning wave at 134.

Goosen, 41, a two-time winner of the U.S. Open, had a round that included six birdies and two bogeys.

David Champagne is not listed in the official results, nor is he eligible to win the Bridgestone Invitational, but he did play a round of 18 holes Thursday alongside Henrik Stenson on the South Course at Firestone Country Club.

Champagne, in his third season as a golf pro at Firestone Country Club, played with Stenson because the field is at an uneven number (81) after Robert Allenby withdrew from the tournament due to an injury.

Bubba Watson shot a 6-under-par 64 in the first round of the Bridgestone Invitational on the South Course at Firestone Country Club. He recorded seven birdies. He birdied No.'s 1, 5, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 18.

Birdieing five of his final eight holes, Phil Mickelson finished with a round of 4-under 66 to trail leader Bubba Watson by two shots in Thursday's first round of the Bridgestone Invitational.

Teeing off at No. 10, Mickelson shot 1-over on the back nine with bogeys at Nos. 14 and 15 with a birdie at 16. He found his game on the front nine, birdieing Nos. 2, 3, 6, 7 and 9 for a 30 on the par-70 layout.

Steve Stricker and Chad Campbell share the early lead at 3-under par in Thursday's first round of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club.

Stricker, seventh on the PGA Tour money list and fourth in the world rankings, birdied three of his first six holes, starting on the back nine. He came out hot with birdies at Nos. 10 and 12 and added another at the 15th. He stood 3-under through seven holes.

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem understands the logjam of events occurring this week in Ohio. From his perspective, there isn't much that can be done.

The Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone will once again run into the NFL's Hall of Fame induction ceremony this weekend in Canton. While both events would be better served if held on different weekends, Finchem doesn't think that's very realistic — at least from golf's perspective.

Anthony Kim will play his first tournament in three months this week at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational and he might do it without a full 18-hole practice round.

Kim said he would try to play 18 Tuesday afternoon, but more likely it would be nine Tuesday and nine Wednesday before he tees off with British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen at 10 a.m. Thursday in the $8.5 million event.

Australian Stuart Appleby has a celebration planned for Tuesday night after tying the PGA Tour's single-round scoring record Sunday with a 59.

The effort helped him capture The Greenbrier Classic by one stroke over Jeff Overton and earn a spot in this week's $8.5 million World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. Appleby has played in the PGA Tour event at Firestone Country Club every year starting in 1997, when it was the NEC World Series of Golf.